


The Deep End

by HyperKid



Series: Trans Caleb AU [6]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Bath Time, Coming Out, Coming Out Day, Multi, Nonbinary Character, Other, Trans Male Character, Trans!Mollymauk, of pants, rated for naked bits, trans!Caleb Widogast, tw: dissociation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 13:21:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21016454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyperKid/pseuds/HyperKid
Summary: It’s time for something Caleb has been simultaneously looking forward to and mostly just dreading... gratuitous group nudity. The ladies already know, but words are hard and it was Molly’s idea anyway.





	The Deep End

**Author's Note:**

> HK: This wasn’t actually intended for Coming Out Day, but it’s close enough so now it’s for that too!   
Mollymauk: I firmly maintain that wet and naked is a great way to have any conversation.   
HK: And in this case it means you can just skip the conversation.   
Mollymauk: Exactly! It’s the perfect format.   
HK: Are we ~sure~ Yasha’s the Scandinavian?   
Mollymauk: I think you’ll find the desire for nudity is very natural in two year olds.   
HK: .... I mean I can’t argue with that.   
Mollymauk: And we’re not even naked. 
> 
> WARNINGS!! Lots of boob and dick out. Mentions of dissociation and Caleb is an angsty boy. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Critical role or any affiliated works.

His heart is thumping a mile a minute when Molly mentions the bath house. It’s hammering hard enough by the time they reach the door that he’s surprised the others can’t all hear it. It’s a constant pounding in his head, a thrumming in his ears when they split from Jester, Nott, and Beau to undress. 

Fjord and Molly seem completely untroubled, but then he has to suppose they’ve undressed in front of each other before. But all Caleb can think is that this is it. 

His last chance to back out. 

His last chance to keep this particular secret. 

There’s a lot of unpleasant stories his naked body can tell. But only one that people seem to notice right from the start. 

His hands are shaking as he unwraps the bandages from his arms. Molly’s already shucking his shirt and binder, his body a colourful patchwork of art and scars. 

One of his nipple piercings catches the light and for an absurd moment Caleb imagines it’s winking at him. It might be the blatant panic talking. 

A quick glance confirms that Fjord is working his way out of his armour, utterly indifferent. His head turns just a little and Caleb jerks his own away in what definitely looks like a guilty motion. 

Fuck, he’s not even taken his coat off. 

It shouldn’t be this hard. 

He’s undressed in front of Jester and Beau half a dozen times now. Accidentally in Jester’s case, at least once. 

But they know. 

Beau knew even before she saw him, and he still can’t work out how. Shady bitch. 

None of that makes it easier and he finds himself folding the bandages with more care than he’s ever done in his life. Molly’s peeling himself out of his boots and Fjord is down to his undershirt by the time he can make himself shrug out of his coat. 

Neither of them are watching him. It doesn’t help. 

He feels fucking naked without the coat, despite three layers between them and his skin. 

He’s not used to being so damn self conscious about nudity. 

It takes a while for him to notice that the other two are talking. The words float in from far away, dim and distorted out of meaning. They’re not pausing, so at least they’re not expecting him to answer. 

Fuck, he should have gone with the girls. 

But then they’d have had questions, and they’d have seen him anyway the moment he stepped into the bath. 

But he’d have had Nott there. 

Jester and Beau at his back. 

He’s pretty much completely dissociated, his boots and shirt gone almost without him noticing. Just the wrap and his trousers left. 

His hands are shaking so much as he reaches for his belt that he can barely grip it. 

“Need a hand?” 

Caleb jumps hard enough at the words that the edge of his binding tugs free, the end flopping against skin. It’s too tight to just fall off, but the loosening is enough to snap him back. 

Well. The panic is. 

Fjord and Molly look startled enough that his reaction was ~definitely~ noticeable, Molly’s flirty grin fading from his face. 

Caleb’s hands move slowly to begin unwrapping his chest. There’s something oddly liberating about having the choice taken from him. Though he’s sorely tempted just to tie it back up. 

But they’re here for a damn bath. 

He can’t quite face them head on, or turn his back, so he’s got his side to them when Molly slaps Fjord’s ass, a wicked grin taking over his lips. 

“You are far too dressed still,” he teases, his voice overly loud where it cuts the tense silence. 

Fjord, clad only in white cotton smallclothes, rolls his eyes and tucks his thumbs into them. 

“You’re jus’ sayin’ that cuz you want to peek,” he grumbles, and Molly laughs. 

“Who said anything about peeking? I intend to take a good long ogle!” 

Fjord tosses his underwear to the floor and stands with his hands on his hips, a half glare daring Molly to look. Molly responds by making an entire production of leaning around for the best view. 

And fucking commentating. 

“See, now this is what I was talking about. Nothing there to be ashamed of in the least!” 

Rolling his eyes, Fjord’s cheeks are distinctly flushing russet as he turns to grab a towel. 

“Nothin’ you’ve not seen before,” he grumbles and Molly laughs again. 

Somehow the laughter helps to eat away at the terror in Caleb’s gut. They’re not watching him. They’re not going to care. Molly’s already tits out and... 

And the sneaky bastard still has his leggings on. 

Fjord notices around when Caleb’s dropped the last of his bandages and is tugging the belt from his trousers. 

“Hey, when do we get a return show, Tealeaf? This whole thing was your idea! Right Caleb?” 

The sound of his name startles him again. Rough cloth slips from his fingers and tangle around his knees as he turns, almost tripping. 

“What?” 

For a long, frozen moment, nothing moves. 

There’s no fucking chance they can’t see. 

And they’re both looking at him. 

And then Molly’s sighing dramatically and kicking his legs up, yanking skin tight leggings off and tossing them aside. He rises with all the smooth, lean grace of a born performer and saunters to stand directly between Caleb and Fjord. 

Blocking Fjord’s view of the wizard. 

He turns so he’s faced each of them in turn, gesturing down the lean length of his body for both to see. 

“Anything that interests you?” It’s such an obvious front, a lewd and sultry purr that Caleb almost doesn’t notice the interesting thing. 

But as Molly turns, there’s another glint at his hips and Caleb’s mouth opens and closes a few times. Gives up on words. 

Luckily, Fjord seems to have found a few. 

“Fuck, Molls. I never did ask but those must have fucking hurt.” 

Kicking his trousers off from his ankles, Caleb manages a stumbling step forward. Yes, Molly had said in the cart, hadn’t he? 

He’s most of the way around the tiefling before he remembers that that means Fjord will see him again. Forces back the rising panic. 

Fjord’s fucking seen him now. And is going to see a lot more of him until all of them are waist deep in water. 

It’s something of a blessing to have Molly’s dick piercings to focus on. 

Because yeah, the tiefling has taken himself in hand and he does have a proper cock. Not the largest, not with Fjord in the room, but long enough for four slim bars to pierce the underside like a ladder. He flicks one of them, tipping Caleb a wink that’s almost too comic to be obscene. 

“Oh they fucking did. I had to sit with ice in my pants for the next two weeks. Yasha offered to carry me over her shoulder but I’m not sure she thought that one through.” 

He turns to give Caleb a better view, fingers gripping the head so he can take a long look at his jewellery. They’re alternating gold and silver, complementing both horns, and for a moment all Caleb can think is that it looks less tacky than it should. 

And maybe just a little bit wonders what they’d feel like in his hand. 

Fjord’s cheeks are still flushed and he’s angled himself away from Caleb just a little. Giving him space? 

He certainly doesn’t seem disgusted, just mildly exasperated as he rolls his eyes at Molly. 

“So I guess we’re gettin’ this over with? We’ll need the ladies for this conversation so we may as well be naked an’ boiling.” He pauses at the door and glances back at Caleb. Almost just at the top of his head, the way he refuses to look down. 

It’s absurd enough that the wizard’s silly side can kick in and he spreads his hands in an imitation of Molly, the faintest hint of a smile curling his lips. Fjord’s practically more afraid of his body than he is himself. 

“I’m ready to go.” 

Fjord’s gaze shifts down to follow his hands, jerks back to his face like he was burned. Sticks on the smile, which is only growing wider. And the half orc grins back, just a little shame faced. 

“Yeah... sorry. Just not sure where to look. You seemed a little...” he trails off, not sure how to finish the sentence. 

To be fair, Caleb isn’t sure how that sentence should end either. 

Somehow, having it finally all out there feels like a weight has been lifted. They all know. All the Nein. And none of them have said anything, done anything, pushed him away. He’s wearing nothing but the amulet around his neck, and for the first time in so long he finally feels free. 

If they don’t care, it may never come up again. He doesn’t need to hide it. 

There’s so, so much else that he needs to hide. 

But he can at least give them this. 

It’s enough to build a small glow in his chest, buoying him up. It’s easy to cross the room, to pat Fjord on the elbow. To let Molly link an arm through his and to push out into the bath house. 

Through the faint haze of steam, he can see a dozen pools, all filled with people. Faceless, anonymous nobodies who have no idea who he is. Who care even less. 

The only faces that matter are the three that turn to him from the largest pool, grins spreading and arms waving. 

“About fuckin’ time!” Beau calls excitedly, pointing across the water, “Look who we found!” 

Molly takes a few steps forward and lets out a whoop, tugging from Caleb’s side to run across the room and leap into the bath. Other guests scatter in lieu of a splash, but before he can hit the water the tiefling is caught in strong, pale arms. 

Yasha turns, tossing Molly over her shoulder as easily as she would a kitten, and gives the other two a shy smile. 

“Hello.” 

Caleb hadn’t expected to be coming out to anyone else today. But Yasha’s so busy wrangling a squirming Molly and eventually turning to dunk him into the bath that there’s not much time for the fear to build. 

He finds that he’s still smiling as he crosses the room, pausing at Nott’s side. 

“You good?” 

She gives him a terribly shaky smile, still more than a foot from the edge of the pool and nods. 

“So far...” her voice is shaking a little too and he pauses, crouching in front of her. 

“Do you want to go?” 

The goblin girl shakes her head at once, flinching back as Fjord hauls himself into the water and Jester and Beau both begin splashing him. It seems like it’s taking an effort for her not to run right then. But she gives him another quavering smile and nods to the bath. 

“Seems like this is something important for us to talk about.” 

“Mollyyyyy! They’re so pretty!” 

Jester’s shriek draws every eye in the building, most of which look away again almost immediately. It’s apparently the first time the cleric has gotten a proper look at Molly’s other piercings and she’s pretty much face down in his lap, prodding eagerly at the shining bars. 

Sprawled with one ankle hooked on the side of the bath, Molly is grinning and doing less than nothing to deter her. 

Another smile tugs at Caleb’s lips. 

“Well, I’m sure we’ll get to the important conversations eventually.” 

Nott gives the pair of tieflings a distrustful look, scooting a little further away from the water. Possibly the first time since Caleb’s known her that she’s seen something shiny and not immediately wanted it. 

“Eventually,” she agrees with a sigh, then nods towards the bath again. “You may as well get in and enjoy it.” 

And he does; sinking almost immediately to his ears, letting the heat melt any remaining tension from his bones. It’s done. Over with. He’s never going to have to do it again. 

And as he relaxes into the water, all grime from the road soaking free, he lets himself forget who he is just long enough to enjoy being properly clean. 

**Author's Note:**

> HK: And yes, the orgy is still coming! Literally. But I require soft Caleb and dramatic Molly and y’all can fight me about it later. There might be another chapter to this someday if I can think of one. There will absolutely be more trans Caleb.


End file.
